Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/
works/12501916.
  Rating:
      Explicit
  Archive Warning:
      Graphic_Depictions_Of_Violence, Major_Character_Death, Rape/Non-Con,
      Underage
  Category:
      M/M
  Fandom:
      The_Walking_Dead_(TV)
  Relationship:
      Gareth/Carl_Grimes, Carl_Grimes/Other(s)
  Character:
      Carl_Grimes, Gareth_(Walking_Dead), Terminus_Residents_(Walking_Dead),
      Rick_Grimes, Michonne_(Walking_Dead), Daryl_Dixon, Mary_(Walking_Dead:
      Terminus), Alex_(Walking_Dead:_Terminus), Glenn_Rhee, Maggie_Greene,
      Abraham_Ford, Eugene_Porter, Rosita_Espinosa, Carol_Peletier, Tara
      Chambler, Tyreese_Williams, Sasha_Williams_(Walking_Dead), Gabriel
      Stokes, Martin_(Walking_Dead), Most_Characters_Are_Very_Minor_Or_Just
      Mentioned
  Additional Tags:
      Underage_Rape/Non-con, Gang_Rape, Angry_Rick_Grimes, Protective_Rick
      Grimes, Pedophilia, Blood, Sad_Carl_Grimes, Threats, Manipulation,
      Imprisonment, Cannibalism, Forced_Cannibalism, Agony, Hurt/Comfort,
      Angst, Protective_Daryl_Dixon, Sexual_Slavery, Statutory_Rape, Revenge,
      Torture, Rape, Rape_Recovery
  Stats:
      Published: 2017-10-25 Completed: 2017-12-10 Chapters: 10/10 Words: 15019
****** Witness ******
by EdgyFood87
Summary
     Gareth looked down at the petrified people below him. He watched as
     they reluctantly dropped their weapons and tried to figure a way out
     of this, not that there was one.
     He skimmed over his catches of the day, his prey, eyes stopping on
     one boy in particular. He wanted him. He wanted that kid.
Notes
     I'm sorry if this doesn't meet your expectations. I'm not a very good
     writer, but I'll try my best.
     And yeah, I know that these Terminus people probably wouldn't be
     heartless rapists after what happened to them, but it's just a
     fanfiction and I wanted to write it, so I did.
     Also, Alex didn't die. He's still here
***** I Buried the Judgement *****
Gareth
"Drop your weapons! Now!" Gareth stood atop the building, rolling his eyes. He
was bored. This shit happened all the time. It was always the same. People
came, looking for sanctuary. Something happened, and then they get trapped.
What fun. "Now!" he shouted louder.
Gareth looked down at the petrified people below him. He watched as they
reluctantly dropped their weapons and tried to figure a way out of this, not
that there was one.
He skimmed over his catches of the day, his prey, eyes stopping on one boy in
particular. He wanted him. He wanted that kid.
He cocked his head to the side and smirked. It was obvious at first sight that
Rick and Carl were father and son, but there was a stronger emotional bond
between the two than Gareth had seen in years. These two loved each other to
death. But, hell, that's how family is supposed to be right? Yes. But it's not
like there's much of that anymore. Gareth loved his mother, but he'd sacrifice
her in a second to save himself.
Sorry, Mom.
These two aren't like that.
Rick gave Carl a reassuring nod. Gareth could practically read his mind. You're
wrong, Rick. Nothing is going to be alright.
"Ringleader," Gareth addressed Rick. The man looked up and glared at him with
those piercing blue eyes. Gareth ignored him and continued to talk. "Go to your
left." Rick didn't move. Gareth pointed angrily. He was bored. "The train car,
go."
Rick still didn't move. This fucking guy.
Gareth never really liked lying. It was weird. He was weird that way. He could
do all these horrible things, like eating people, among other things, but
lying... Lying was just too much. Gareth chuckled at his own stupidity. Lying.
He really hated it, but if he was going to get anywhere with these people, he
had to. "You do what we say, the boy goes with you. Anything else, he dies, and
you end up in there anyway."
Rick shot Gareth a look so fierce Gareth flinched. He quickly brushed it off
and taunted Rick with childish facial expressions as the man slowly made his
way over to the train car.
"Now the archer." The redneck also shot him a glare as he stomped over to join
his friend.
"Now the samurai," Gareth chuckled at his clever little names. He let out a
happy sigh. "I'm awesome, right?" he mumbled to his friends, looking to the
side at them. They rolled their eyes at him. "Of course you are, Gareth."
Gareth laughed and clapped his hands together, then scowled as Michonne also
gave him a death stare. This was becoming a game.
Ding ding! Who can give Gareth the deadliest stare? Winner gets a million
rifles!
"Stand at the door. Ringleader, archer, samurai, in that order!" he shouted
threateningly. He looked behind him and signaled with his hand. A couple of
people left and went to go do their little jobs.
"My son!" Rick yelled at him.
Gareth ignored him. "Ringleader, open the door and go in."
"I'll go in with him." Rick commanded, jerking his head towards his son. This
man is so damn annoying.
"See, Rick, you're not exactly in charge here. He'll join you when I say he
can." Rick snarled at Gareth while Michonne and Daryl exchanged worried
glances. Carl was shaking as he locked eyes with his father.
"You touch him and I'll skin you," Rick seethed.
Gareth raised his voice even louder. "What that a threat, Rick? What that a
fucking threat?" He nodded his head and the two men Gareth had sent down
earlier came out of the building, running up to Carl. All four tried to move,
but Gareth stopped them in their tracks. "Don't anybody move or you'll get it."
Carl squeezed his eyes shut in fear. The men drew closer and kicked the back of
his leg, bringing him to the ground. He grunted in pain and Gareth smiled
before making his way down to talk to his new friends.
"Oh, Ricky," he sighed, clamping his hand on the man's shoulder. "I'm
disappointed in you. All ya' had to do was do what I said. This wouldn't have
happened," he lied. he cringed a bit. This goddamn lying shit.
"What are you going to do to him?" Rick asked. His voice was laced with pure
fear. It quivered and cracked slightly.
"Oh, you know," Gareth said innocently. "He's just going to help us out a bit."
He smiled at the three anxious adults, eyes darting back and forth to Gareth
and behind him. Their eyes widened. Gareth turned to see what was so
entertaining.
The two men were laughing as they beat the shit out of the boy when he
struggled against their grip. "Come on, guys!" Gareth called to them. "That's
no way to treat our friends!" They smiled at him. One grabbed his hair and held
his head down as the other placed his foot on the boy's back like he was a deer
they had shot in the woods. They looked like they were posing for a damn
hunting picture.
"How is he going to help you?" Daryl hissed at Gareth, voicing the thoughts of
both Rick and Michonne.
Gareth looked down at his feet and kicked at the dirt below him before looking
back up and meeting Rick's eyes with a wolfish grin. "Stress reliever."
Rick punched Gareth in the jaw furiously as the three of them yelled angrily.
Pain shot through his head and he stumbled back. Fists from all three rained
down on him and he fell to the ground. More men came out of the building and
restrained Daryl, Rick, and Michonne. The three screamed and tried to get to
Carl but to no avail. They were forced into the train car, still screaming and
slamming against the door as they were locked in.
"Carl!" Rick was screaming.
Gareth let out a laugh. "Shut up, Rick," he commanded. Rick didn't shut up. He
got louder, in fact. "Shut up and we'll let your little slut visit once in a
while!" Gareth roared.
Rick shut up.
"I know you don't like this, Ricky boy, and I'm sorry." Gareth stopped and
cringed again. Again with the lying. "I just wanted you to know, that how rough
we go will depend on how well you behave. Try to escape or save him, and we'll
fuck him so hard that he never walks again. Be a good Ricky boy and we'll go
gentle with him." Gareth was still lying. He and the rest of the guys here
would fuck Carl as hard as they wanted. Gareth was just saying this to Rick so
that he wouldn't have to deal with more shit if Rick somehow got out and went
looking for his boy.
"Please don't hurt him," Rick whispered through the door, his desperate voice
cracking.
"No promises," Gareth responded. He smiled as Rick and the rest of his friends
began to pound against the train car again. He ignored them and sauntered over
to Carl, still being held down to the ground. He crouched and held out his
hand, slowly stroking the boy's soft cheek. "I'll take it from here," he told
his men. They stepped off the boy and walked back inside, talking in hushed
voices about how much fun they were going to have with Carl later.
Gareth pulled out a rope and tied Carl's hand behind his back. He placed a hand
under his arm and forcefully pulled him up and marched back inside, dragging
his new toy with him.
"What do you want with me?" Carl asked Gareth, looking up at him. Gareth
smiled. This kid was scared, but he didn't show it much. He looked mostly
angry.
Gareth tightened his grip on the boy and marched him through the building,
finally shoving him into a small stone room with nothing but a thin mattress in
the corner.
"Ever heard of fucking?" he asked as he cut Carl's ropes off. He liked them
better when they struggled.
Carl's anger drained from his face and was instantly replaced with pure fear.
Obviously he had.
***** I Covered My Tracks *****
Glenn
When they first heard the gunshots they had just assumed some more poor random
souls came across the "sanctuary" and were being coaxed to imprisonment like
they had.
When they heard the shouts they didn't even blink.
When they heard Gareth taunting the new people, they just sighed sadly.
When their screaming friends were shoved into the boxcar, they thought Rick was
just a bit pissed that he had been captured.
When he screamed for Carl, everyone panicked.
He, Daryl, and Michonne either ignored their friends or didn't even notice them
at all and started to slam against the door, desperately trying to get it open.
They didn't stop til they had used up all their energy. Rick collapsed to the
ground and sobbed and screamed.
"Rick?" Glenn asked cautiously, stepping forward as if Rick was frightened
animal who was ready to run or attack at any second. He held out a hand and
Rick looked up with red eyes.
"Glenn?" he asked, his voice cracking.
"Yeah, it's me," Glenn told him. "What happened?"
Rick sniffled and leaned his head back. Everyone in the boxcar gathered into a
circle to hear what Rick was going to say, but he didn't say anything. He just
curled into a ball and sobbed.
"Did they kill him?" Maggie whispered.
Daryl shook his head glumly while Michonne's lip quivered.
"Then what happened?"
Silence.
Everyone stared as the three sobbed quietly together. Rick tried to compose
himself and talk, only to completely break down again. He screamed and slammed
his body against the boxcar door, trying to break out and get to his son.
Whatever happened, it was bad.
A few minutes later, the door opened and a bunch of men held guns up to the
group so they wouldn't try to escape. Gareth came up from behind them and
sighed at Rick.
"You know, I heard you screaming," he said casually. Rick didn't say anything.
He just glared at Gareth with such hatred that even Glenn was scared. "Your
little boy sounded the same while I was fucking his brains out." Shocked gasps
rang throughout the boxcar and Glenn glared at Gareth.
"Did you really...?" he said quietly.
Gareth smirked. "It was excellent." Glenn took a horrified step back as he
thought about the boy he had watched grow up. The boy he had come to think of
as little brother, reduced to such a state
Rick roared in rage and tried to punch Gareth, only for one of the guards to
slam the butt of his rifle into his face. He fell to the ground with a cry,
clutching his face. He quickly recovered and sat up, seething with anger.
"Where is he? What did you do to him?"
"Oh, you know what I did. You're not 2. Anyway, he's with Alex right now. I
already had my fun with him, so I let my boys take their turns." Gareth still
looked bored. "Well, anyway, it's time for you to eat, so..." He walked away
and returned a few seconds later with a few bags of powdered milk. "Eat up," he
smirked cruelly and left, the door shutting behind them. Rick let out a
strangled cry and continued to try to break out and get to his kid.
Carl
Gareth ripped off the boy's shirt and roughly shoved him against the wall,
biting at his shoulders. Carl turned his head to the side and sobbed, failing
his arms and trying to push the disgusting man off of him. It was happening
again. Only mere hours ago, another man had pinned him to the ground and
attempted to violate him, but this time was different. This time, Rick wasn't
here to save him. This time, he was alone.
"Please stop," he whimpered desperately, shoving as hard as he could against
Gareth.
Gareth just said, "oh, hell no." and threw Carl onto the thin mattress,
climbing on top of the terrified boy. Gareth grabbed at Carl's belt, undoing it
eagerly. Carl did everything in his power to stop the man, but Gareth
eventually managed to pin Carl's hands above his head and started to pull down
his pants. Carl screamed as loud as he could, even though he knew no help would
come. He tried to kick and bite at the man on top of him, but Gareth just
laughed and forcefully planted a bruising kiss on Carl's mouth.
"Stop it!" Carl screamed desperately as Gareth forced him on his stomach.
"Please!" Gareth laughed and took off his own clothes and pressed himself
against the shivering boy, wrapping an arm around his quivering chest and
pulling him close.
"Beg for it," he snarled in Carl's ear. Carl sobbed and violently shook his
head, still trying to struggle against Gareth. Gareth shrugged. "You will one
day. That's a promise, my little cock slut." With that, he forced himself in,
finding great pleasure in Carl's screams of agony as he thrusted in and out out
of the tortured boy.
Carl felt more pain then he had ever though possible. Each thrust was like a
knife being shoved deeper and deeper, somehow finding its way farther in even
when Carl thought it had nowhere else to go. It went on and on, and just as
Carl began to think there would be no end to this unendurable torture, he felt
a warmth as Gareth came inside of him and Gareth pulled out. He stopped
screaming and just gasped in pain. He tried feebly to sit up, but Gareth pushed
him back down.
"Not just yet," he commanded as he prepped himself and entered Carl for a
second round.
Gareth
When Carl stopped screaming, Gareth looked down and saw that he had passed out
from the pain. He shook his head and laughed, finishing. He climbed off the
unconscious boy and pulled his clothes back on. He left Carl naked and broken
on the ground and went to go find Alex.
"He's all yours, bud," he said, patting his brother on the shoulder. Alex
smiled at Gareth excitedly and raced off to go play with their new toy.
***** Soon To Be Forgotten *****
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes
Gareth
Gareth sat outside Carl's room, listening to his screams as his men took their
turns with him. He could hear the men grunting as they fucked Carl without any
reservations. He smiled as the cries grew louder with each thrust.
Gareth rested his head against the wall, sighing happily. The screams were like
a lullaby to his psychopathic self. He was just starting to drift off when his
eyes snapped back open, realizing that he hadn't fed Carl the entire 3 days.
"Fuck," he cursed himself. He'd been careless. If the boy didn't eat, they'd
lose their toy. He raced through the building, sprinting outside to where his
mother was cooking the lovely couple from Boxcar D. He grabbed at a plate
desperately.
Mary let out a laugh. "Hungry, dear?" she asked him.
"It's for Carl," Gareth responded quickly. "I forgot to feed him."
Mary sighed and shook her head. "You need to take better care of your pets,
Gareth," she scolded him.
"Sorry, mom, I will," Gareth winked at her playfully, racing back to Carl's
room.
He burst through the door, ignoring the man pounding into Carl. He crouched
down next to the screaming boy and held out a piece of meat. "Eat it," he
commanded. Carl didn't even seem to notice he was there. His eyes were squeezed
shut and he was screeching in complete agony. Gareth gave the man on top of him
a look.
"Hudson." the man looked up at Gareth.
"Stop for a minute," Gareth told him.
Hudson slowed his thrusts but didn't stop as he gave Gareth a pleading look.
"Come on, Gareth. I'm almost done." Gareth smiled at him and nodded, giving him
permission to finish. Hudson grinned evilly and grabbed a fistful of Carl's
hair, pounding into him as hard as he possibly could. Carl shrieked louder than
Gareth had ever heard. He blinked in surprise and stood to join the other men
against the wall, laughing along as he watched. Hudson finally came and pulled
out. Both he and Carl were covered in Carl's blood.
"Dammit, Hudson, you completely tore him up," Aiden complained.
Gareth looked down at the boy in shock. "Guys, he might need some time to
recover. Come back tomorrow," he told the men. They groaned and the 7 of them
reluctantly left the room, 2 of them complaining that they never got a turn.
When the door closed behind him, Gareth grabbed Carl and forced him to sit up
against the wall. Carl cried out softly and Gareth took the plate and sat next
to him. "You need to eat," he said softly, ripping off a small piece and
holding it out to the boy.
"I'm not eating that shit," Carl grunted weakly. It didn't take a genius to see
that Carl was fighting to stay awake as he said those words slowly and with
great difficulty.
"If you don't eat, you'll die," Gareth told him, tilting his head to the side.
Carl shot him a glare.
"Good," he mumbled. Gareth snarled and grabbed at Carl's mouth, forcing it open
and shoving the human cattle in. He used his hands to clamp Carl's mouth shut.
"Swallow it," he commanded. Carl shook his head, still trying to spit it out.
"Eat it or I will kill your father right in front of you." Gareth growled
threateningly. Carl ate it.
- - 4 Days Later - -
Gareth was bored. He had grown used to the screams and cries coming from the
small stone room. Gareth and his men spent close to 20 hours in that room every
day torturing the boy. He still enjoyed seeing the tears flow and listening to
the screaming, but it was starting to get a bit stale. Not old, never old. Just
stale. Gareth wanted to hear someone else cry out. He didn't want to take
anyone else. Carl was enough for him and his men, and hell, most of them even
admitted they'd choose Carl over any of the women in any of the boxcars.
"He's just so damn tight," they'd say. Gareth would agree and then go to visit
his boy, giving the cowering figure curled in the corner a sinister grin as he
grabbed at him.
When the small group left the room, laughing, Gareth stood and went over to
Boxcar A.
Daryl
The door opened and Gareth stood in front of the group. Rick was curled on
Michonne's lap, having passed out from crying. Michonne stood quickly once she
saw who it was, waking Rick. Rick looked groggy at first, but soon stomped over
to face the man who had raped his son.
"Where is he?" he demanded angrily.
"Rick," Michonne placed a hand on his shoulder. She whispered something in
Rick's ear that Daryl couldn't hear, but it made Rick back down.
"Don't talk to me that way, Ricky," Gareth told him. "You know what happens to
your boy if you do." Rick glared at Gareth with an intense hatred but didn't
say anything. "Anyway," Gareth continued, "I'm feeling generous today, so I'm
letting one of you come to visit Carl."
Rick began to walk forward, but Gareth shoved him back. "Not you," he said.
Rick look surprised at first then furious. Gareth turned and pointed to Daryl.
"You." Daryl opened his mouth to object, but Gareth stopped him before he could
say anything. "It's you or nobody."
Daryl nodded and shot Rick an apologetic glance as he left the boxcar with
Gareth. He tried to block out the sounds of Rick sobbing behind him.
"Why me?" he asked Gareth as they made their way through the building. Daryl
was making sure he remembered every turn for when they escaped later.
Gareth shrugged. "I wanted to make him mad," he responded nonchalantly. "I
guess it worked." He stopped at a door and unlocked it, shoving Daryl in.
"You've got 10 minutes," he told him.
Daryl gaped as he looked around the tiny room. The floor was covered in blood
among other bodily fluids. It was filthy. The room reeked of sex. He continued
to scan the room, his eyes stopping on Carl, who was pretty much naked and
cowering in a corner, his hair covering his eyes.
"Carl," Daryl breathed. The boy looked up at Daryl with terrified eyes.
He looked horrible. His eyes were bloodshot and he had huge circles under them
from sleeplessness. He was getting pretty thin and his neck was covered in
hickies and bite marks. His jeans were shredded and ripped. He didn't even have
a shirt at all.
"Daryl?" he said quietly, his voice hoarse.
"Yeah, it's me, buddy," Daryl said softly, trying to force a smile. He placed a
hand on Carl's shoulder and brushed the hair out of the boy's face. "Are you
okay?" he asked even though he knew the answer. Carl shook his head weakly and
Daryl looked down at the ground. "I'm going to get you out of here," he
promised. Carl nodded as Daryl sat next to him and embraced him. He tried not
to feel hurt as Carl flinched at his touch, telling himself this was Gareth's
doing.
Daryl held Carl until the door opened. It wasn't Gareth who entered, however,
but a different person Daryl hadn't seen before. "What are you doing here?" he
snarled at Daryl.
Daryl pushed Carl off of him as gentle as he could and stood to face the man.
"Gareth let me visit. What are you doing here?"
The man licked his lips, looking annoyed. "I'm here to have a little fun with
our pet." He spat the last word and Daryl spared a brief glance at his broken
friend. He was shaking in fear and Daryl felt a new surge of strength. He
wasn't going to let this asshole anywhere near Carl. He grabbed the man by his
neck and slammed his skull repeatedly against the wall, soon leaving his head
as nothing more than a pile of blood and brains. He grabbed the man's gun and
turned to his friend.
Daryl raced over and helped Carl to stand. "We're getting the hell out of
here," he said breathlessly. "Can you walk?"
"I... I don't know," Carl said. He tried to take a step but wavered on unsteady
feet. Daryl grabbed him before he could fall and lifted him off his feet. Carl
wrapped his arms around Daryl's neck and the two left the room.
Chapter End Notes
     So do you want them to escape or not? I have ideas for both, and I
     honestly can't decide.
***** There's A New Life Ahead *****
Chapter Notes
     Iz Halloween, bitchez!
     Spoopy!
See the end of the chapter for more notes
Daryl
Daryl held on to Carl as tightly as he could as he raced through building.
Thankfully, he had a good memory and made it outside in no time. He ran past
train car A, but he didn't stop to let his friends out. There weren't any
guards out at the time, and Daryl wasn't going to risk getting caught. He'd
come back for Rick and the rest later, but for now, he had to get Carl the fuck
out of this hellhole.
He snuck over to the fence behind the train car and said to his friend, "This
is going to hurt. Try not to make a sound." Carl nodded and Daryl threw him
over the fence. Carl cried out quietly, but it wasn't too loud. Daryl threw his
gun over and jumped. As he landed on the ground, a gunshot rang out and a
bullet landed dangerously close to his foot. He whipped around and saw a very
pissed-off Gareth flanked by three men.
"Shit," Daryl said frantically, grabbing at his gun and picking up Carl. He
sprinted into the cover of the woods as Gareth yelled at him from behind.
"You really think we wouldn't have noticed you?"
"Fuck off, you sick piece of shit!" Daryl yelled back. Carl whimpered and his
grip around Daryl's neck tightened. Daryl also tightened his grip on the boy
and ran faster.
Another gunshot rang out, and this time Carl cried out, blood spraying from his
shoulder. He heard Gareth curse behind him. Hurt your little toy, Gareth? Daryl
thought angrily as he recalled the awful names the men had called Carl. He
continued to sprint farther through the trees, hoping to lose Gareth and his
men.
Daryl took different twists and turns, hoping to lose the men following them.
It took a while, but eventually Daryl lost them, or he was sure he had. He
stopped, panting heavily, in front of a church. Still carrying Carl, he took
out his gun and opened the door.
He stepped inside and was surprised and suspicious to find that there wasn't a
speck of dust in the church. He checked every inch of the building before
laying Carl down on the floor and taking out his rag to stop the bleeding from
the bullet wound. He checked front and back and was relieved to find that there
was an exit wound.
"This is going to hurt," he warned the boy before pulling out a bottle of
rubbing alcohol he had found while searching the church. How convenient. He
poured some alcohol on the red rag he always carried with him and pressed it
onto Carl's wound. The boy cried out in pain and tried to move, but Daryl held
him down while he tried his best to clean the injury. This must have triggered
something in Carl, however, because he began to thrash and scream and tried to
get away like his life depended on it. Daryl embraced him and tried to calm him
down with soothing words.
"Carl, you're okay," he said, tears forming at his eyes. Daryl rarely cried.
Not when he would be beaten as a child. Not when the world went to shit. Not
when the friends around him died. But this, this was heartbreaking. Daryl
couldn't hold it back anymore, and he held onto Carl tightly and sobbed into
his neck. Carl held him and sobbed back.
Rick
Rick was slumped over in the corner of the boxcar, waiting for his friend to
return. Maggie was peeking through the small opening in the door, scanning the
grounds for any signs of Daryl. When she let out a gasp that was both excited
and terrified, everyone looked up from whatever the hell they were doing.
"Rick," she said, motioning for him to join her. "Come look at this!"
Rick scrambled to his feet and was at the door in seconds, looking through the
cracks. His heart accelerated when he saw Daryl running from the building,
carrying Carl in his strong arms.
His heart fell in horror when he saw the state his son was in. Tears, both
happy and upset, started to leak from his eyes and his covered his mouth with
one hand. A muffled cry seeped through his fingers and he fell to the floor,
still watching Daryl and Carl with a smile.
His smile faded when Gareth came out of the building, shooting a gun.
"You really think we wouldn't have noticed you?" he heard Gareth calling.
Everyone else in the boxcar must have heard it as well, because they were
starting to crowd around the cracks along the door.
"Fuck off, you sick piece of shit!" Daryl's voice was faint but there. A few
small, scattered chuckles rang out, but they soon stopped when Carl cried out.
Everyone went quiet. Rick could feel his heart pounding in his chest. He could
hear it. He froze for a moment before trying to open the door again. This time,
everyone else in the train car joined in.
Carl
Needless to say, Carl was a bit surprised when Daryl of all people hugged him
and sobbed, but right now he needed someone, anyone, and he was all too
willing, wrapping his arms around Daryl. He closed his eyes and buried his face
in Daryl's long hair, tears pouring out of his eyes.
When the two finally separated, Carl suddenly became aware of his gunshot wound
again, and he began to gasp in pain. Daryl pressed his rag against it to stop
the bleeding. Carl had been looking at the blood pouring out of his shoulder,
so when he looked up and saw a man standing behind Daryl, he nearly shit
himself.
He pointed to the man worriedly and Daryl jumped up, standing in front of Carl
protectively. The man smiled.
"Hello," he said happily.
What the fuck?
Daryl took his gun out and held it to the man's face. "Who are you?" he asked
him.
"I'm Father Gabriel," the man responded. "This is my church. If you don't mind
me asking, what happened?" He asked, nodding in Carl's direction.
"None a' your damn business," Daryl mumbled.
Gabriel held up his hands. "My apologies," he said kindly. "If you need
anything, just talk to me." With that, he turned his back and casually walked
away into another room.
Daryl and Carl watched him go with shock and suspicion. Daryl placed a hand
comfortingly on Carl's shoulder and stood. "Stay here," he said. "I'll be back
in a moment." He followed Gabriel and Carl was left alone to swim in his
thoughts. They were fucking terrifying. Although it had only been about 5
minutes, he prayed for Daryl to come back soon.
Gareth
"Fucking find him already!" Gareth shouted at his men.
"I'm sorry, Gareth, but it's too dark out! We can't see shit!" Aiden called
back from farther inside the woods.
"We could just find him in the morning?" Daniel offered.
"They could be miles away by then! Or dead!" Gareth was beside himself with
worry. Not that he cared for Carl, because he didn't, but because Carl was the
best fucktoy they'd ever had the entire time Terminus had been running.
"You really think some guy and an injured kid are going to make it very far?"
Hudson asked him. "They'll probably just camp up in a tree or something to
avoid the rotters. It's not like they'll be able to fight their way through.
We'll find them in no time, Gareth. We just need to wait for morning."
"He has a gun," Gareth snorted at him.
"Yes, but that could just make everything worse. Besides, if he fires it, we'll
probably hear it!"
Gareth rolled his eyes and sighed, exasperated. "Fine, but if we don't find
them within a week, I will skin you alive."
When they returned, Gareth entered Rick's boxcar and stood in front of the
group. He looked straight at Rick. "You probably saw or heard that your little
boy got away." He tried not to vomit as Rick smirked triumphantly at him. He
snarled and marched forward, grabbing Rick's face and bringing him in close.
"He may be gone for the moment," he hissed. "But we'll find him." He let go and
stood, his eyes scanning over horrified people on their knees. "And when we do,
all of my boys will take their turns fucking the shit out of him right in front
of you." He stopped to let his threat sink in. He smirked at the horrified
sounds and looks spreading through the train car.
He turned to leave. "And when we finish, we'll kill you and feed him your
remains." He slammed the door shut, seething with anger and went to gather his
search party for the next day.
Carl and Daryl
"He doesn't have any weapons," Daryl was cleaning Carl's wound.
"What?" Carl asked, more than a little confused. "Why? How is he still alive?"
He stopped to wince pain shot through his shoulder. Daryl was pouring more
alcohol on his wound. When the pain faded a little, Carl continued to ask
questions, the words coming out in short, pained gasps. "Do you think he's
safe? Are you going to kill him?"
"I don't know, Carl," Daryl told him. "I'm not going to kill him just yet. He
might be able to help us. But I promise I won't take my eyes off of him. Nobody
is ever going to hurt you again." Carl nodded, satisfied with the answer, and
closed his eyes, drifting off into a haunted sleep.
Daryl watched the boy sleep. He studied his chest as it rose and fell
rhythmically. His face which was usually contorted with worry and fear was calm
and peaceful. Daryl found himself smiling slightly despite all the shit that
had been going on lately.
He rested his head against the wall and sighed deeply. Gabriel came into the
room, holding a can of peaches. Daryl looked at him threateningly. "It's for
him," Gabriel said, gesturing to Carl. He held out the can but Daryl pushed it
back.
"He's not touching that shit until you eat some," he growled darkly.
"You think I'm trying to poison him?" Gabriel asked, clearly shocked and
offended.
"Yes."
"I promise you, I'm not."
"I won't believe you until you eat some of it."
Gabriel nodded and opened the can, eating a few peaches. He held the can to
Daryl, who took it and shook Carl awake. "You need to eat," he said. Carl
nodded and took the can, eating a few of the small fruits. He held the can out
to Daryl, but Daryl shook his head. "You need it. I'll get something later."
Carl looked down and continued to eat slowly. Daryl watched him, almost
forgetting about Gabriel.
He turned around to see Gabriel disappear into that weird prayer room. Daryl
ignored him and moved to sit next to Carl rather than across from him like he
had been sitting earlier.
"Carl?"
"Yeah?"
"I think we need to talk."
"What about?" Carl asked, though he already knew the answer.
"Everything."
Chapter End Notes
     If anyone thinks these chapters are shit, tell me and I'll try my
     best to fix them
***** It Was My Hope That Was Fading *****
Chapter Notes
     In case anyone was wondering or cared, this chapter starts 3 days
     after Carl and Daryl escaped.
Daryl
"Everything."
Everything. All this shit. The tears, the screams, the cries. The week that
took years to finally pass by. The week that would destroy, had already
destroyed, everyone Daryl knew.
"It's not your fault," Daryl mumbled as Carl hung his head. "Those men, they're
sick people. Can't even call them human. What they did to you, that was them.
It was all them. Not you. You need to stop blaming yourself."
"I'm not," Carl told him, resting his chin on his legs.
"Yes you are," Daryl glanced over to his friend. "You're not exactly subtle
about it."
"What do you mean?" Daryl looked into Carl's big eyes, his once bright blue
orbs now dull with sadness.
"You were talking in your sleep earlier."
"Oh."
Daryl looked at the floor, then across the room at the almost-empty gun in the
corner of the church. He sighed. How was he going to take care of Carl and get
his friends out of Terminus if he only had 2 bullets left? "Did anything else
happen while...?"
Carl didn't look up and didn't make a sound. He shuffled his feet nervously on
the ground, and Daryl was about to call the whole thing off when Carl spoke.
"They made me eat people."
Daryl snapped his head to the side and looked down at his small friend, feeling
a mix of shock and sympathy. "That wasn't your fault, either."
"They threatened to kill my dad if I didn't eat it."
Daryl nodded and wrapped an arm around Carl's shoulders, pulling him close.
Carl melted into him, probably relived to be receiving a comforting touch
instead of an aggressive one.
Gabriel came from the other room, destroying the moment. "We're very low on
food," he announced. Daryl nodded at him and stood.
"I can go get some," he said. He helped Carl stand and walked him over to the
room Gabriel spent all his time in. Despite Gabriel's protests of having a gun
in that certain holy room, he shoved Gabriel into the room and handed Carl the
gun. He closed the door. "Lock it," he ordered the boy. He listened and
continued after he heard the distinct click. "Don't make a sound and don't open
this door for anyone other than me. I don't care if you think it's your dad
talking to you, that could just be your mind messing with you. I'll be back
later with food."
"Ok," he heard Carl whisper through the door. Daryl left the church and began
to wander around in hope of finding something to eat.
Gareth
"Boss, I think we found some tracks!"
Gareth held his Uzi firmly in hand and jogged over to the shout. He looked down
at the dirt and smirked when he saw the scuffles in the leaves. "We're
definitely on to them," he said, trying to control the excitement that was
bubbling up inside of him.
They followed the trail as quickly and quietly as they could, soon coming
across a church. Gareth exchanged a small glance with Alex before sauntering up
to the door and kicking it open smugly. He looked around the room. It was
empty, but the fact that it was clean as hell did not pass over his head. He
traced a finger along a bench. "Completely spotless," he commented, pressing
his thumb and index finger together and moving them up and down together in an
impatient manner. He smiled and let out a chuckle before he continued to walk
up the aisle.
"I feel like I'm at a wedding," he laughed. Some of his friends chuckled,
others just rolled their eyes.
Gareth stopped next to the alter and glanced back and forth between the two
doors. "Where are you, Carl?" he said in a singsong voice. He didn't get a
response. That's fine, it's not like he expected one. But he still felt a bit
pissed. The week he had Carl he had spent trying to establish to the boy that
Gareth was his master and Carl was his slave. Slaves should respect their
masters, right? If not respect, then at least obey. That's how it was in the
past.
He pressed his ear against one of the doors, but still heard nothing. He moved
to the next door. His heart pumped a beat faster. He could hear ragged,
terrified breathing. It was faint but there. "Alrighty," he said triumphantly,
pushing away from the door. "I know you're in there, Carl. Come on out and
we'll make this easier for you." He cringed. Fucking. Lying. Why.
The door didn't open and Gareth sighed impatiently. "Either you come out and we
do this the easy way, or we bust this door down and we do this shit the hard
way. And trust me, baby boy, you don't want the hard way."
The door still didn't open and Gareth's favorite little pet still didn't come
running into his arms like he was supposed to. "Ok," Gareth said, clapping his
hands together. "Guess we're doing this the hard way." He grinned at his
brother and took a few steps back before raising his leg and kicking it against
the door repeatedly.
Daryl
Daryl wandered through the abandoned town, dodging walkers as they swiped at
him. He didn't have a knife, and he had left his gun back with Carl and
Gabriel. He prayed to whatever god that was listening that he could get some
food and get back to Carl as quickly as possible.
As he stumbled over a legless walker, cursing, he came in front of a Walmart.
He looked at it skeptically. Once the apocalypse started, supermarkets were the
first to be looted. He shrugged it off and stepped inside, looking around. The
place was like the ruins of a war zone. He climbed over debris, grabbing at a
few cans scattered along the floor. It took not even 10 minutes before he was
carrying as much food as he could.
He pranced back to the church, rather satisfied with himself and the amount of
food he was able to collect. When he neared the church, he noticed many sets of
footprints leading up to it. He dropped the cans on the forest floor and
sprinted towards the church. The door was open and Daryl burst in, looking
around frantically. He ran up to the room to where he had left Carl and
Gabriel. The handle was destroyed and when he entered, he saw Gabriel curled
against the wall, clutching his side. Blood was seeping out from between his
fingers as he grunted in pain.
"What happened here?" Daryl demanded. "Where's Carl?'
Gabriel looked up, his eyes filled with agony. "Some people came," he whimpered
pathetically.
"They took him."
Gabriel
"Guess we're doing this the hard way," Gabriel heard the annoying voice say.
Gabriel urged Carl to hide behind something, but the boy was too injured to
move. Gabriel didn't understand how a bullet wound in the shoulder could
prevent him from walking, but now that he was actually starting to think about
what could have happened to him, he was beginning to seethe with anger. He had
just met this kid a few days ago. He already cared for him and he vowed not to
let anything happen to him like he had the others.
He almost jumped out of his skin as someone began to kick against the door. He
heard a faint thump behind him and he looked to see Carl struggling to stand.
Leaning against the wall, he raised the gun Daryl had given him and pointed it
toward the door. Gabriel intended to make sure he didn't need to use it.
With a final crack, the door handle broke and the door swung open, revealing a
man. The man looked at Gabriel, seeming disappointed. "You're not Carl," he
said. Then he looked behind him. "Oh. There you are." Gabriel smiled at the
man.
"Why don't you get out and leave this innocent boy alone?" he told the man
bravely.
"Oh, he isn't innocent anymore," the man scoffed. He chuckled and pushed
Gabriel to the side and reached for Carl. Gabriel recovered quickly and did
something he had never done before. He fought. He landed a punch on the man's
jaw. The fight didn't last long, though, as one of the other men flanking this
asshole shot him in the side of his stomach. Gabriel fell to the ground with a
cry.
He heard grunting and he sat up, his vision threatening to fade. The man was
trying to grab at Carl, but also trying to avoid the kid's gun at the same
time. Carl fired it and it narrowly missed the man's head, hitting the wall
behind him. Carl aimed for another shot, but the man slapped the gun out of his
hand and grabbed Carl's hand, pulling him close.
He roughly turned Carl around and pressed the boy's back into his chest,
dragging him away. "I missed you," the disgusting man whispered in Carl's ear.
The boy whimpered and tried to fight against Gareth, but to no avail. Gareth
took out a pistol and slammed it against the back of Carl's head, effectively
knocking him out. The boy fell to the ground and Gareth picked him up and slung
him over his shoulder.
"Nice knowing you," he said to Gabriel, before leaving and taking an
unconscious Carl with him.
Rick
The boxcar door opened and a large group of men greeted them. They pointed
their guns at them and forced everyone out. "Follow him," one said, nodding to
Alex. Alex grinned evilly and Rick's heart stopped. What was this about? Were
they going to kill them? Did they find Carl and were fulfilling Gareth's
promise?
The group was brought into the first room Daryl, Michonne, Rick, and Carl had
entered when they first came to Terminus. Rick brought his eyes up from the
ground and he saw his son on his knees, being held down by Gareth. Rick tried
to run over to his kid, but Alex kicked his leg, bringing him to the ground.
Rick stared at Gareth with pure hatred as the man gave him a sickening smile.
"I told you we'd find him," he said. "You know what happens now."
***** I Was Caught In A Trap *****
Chapter Notes
     I wrote this chapter instead of sleeping, and I was also really mad
     when I wrote it because my stupid brother burned my Digiorno's pizza.
     So yeah, I tried to make this graphic but I don't think I succeeded
     because all I could think about was my pizza.
Abraham
Abraham stared as Gareth pushed the whimpering boy to the ground. He didn't
know this kid, had never engaged in conversation, had never said a word to him.
This was the first time he'd ever even seen him, other then when he looked
through the door to see Daryl carrying him out of the Terminus building. But
that had been only for a moment and Abraham hadn't even seen his face clearly.
Still, he held his breath in fear and anticipation for the boy.
He didn't need to spare even the tiniest glance toward his companions to know
that they were quivering and leaking silent tears. He knew this boy was
important to them by the way they talked in the boxcar. He could tell from the
way Gareth constantly antagonized Rick like this whole torture shit was just a
game.
Pretty fucked up game.
Gareth gave his men a short, sharp nod and 2 of them moved to hold the boy down
while Gareth undid his belt. Not that it was necessary, the kid looked like he
could barely breathe on his own, let alone get up and run away. Despite this,
the boy still grunted and struggled, but was held down easily. The men laughed
at him as Gareth finally undid his belt and dropped it on the ground, giving
Rick a sick smile as he let his pants fall to the ground. Now naked from the
waist down, Gareth moved to straddle the boy.
"You see, Rick?" Gareth said to the infuriated man, who was currently shaking
with fear and anger for his son. "Carl is mine. Not yours. Mine."
"Get away from him, you fucking pervert," Rick growled in response.
"Don't talk to me that way, Ricky," Gareth snarled as he gripped Carl's hair
and stroked his cheek slowly. This earned another growl from Rick, but he
quickly shut up and Gareth spoke again. "The more you try to resist, the worse
I make this for him."
He smiled at Rick before reaching down to fumble with Carl's pants. Carl tried
to push Gareth off of him, but Gareth clutched both of his thin arms tightly in
one fist and forced them above his head before turning him roughly onto his
stomach and tugging his pants down. "Please don't," Carl pleaded quietly, small
sobs escaping his throat.
Gareth leaned in and bit the boy's ear until it bled, smiling at Carl's groans
of pain and protest. "Beg for it," Abraham heard the disgusting man command
Carl.
Carl took a deep breath and said the words that automatically made Abraham
respect and care for this boy, despite having little knowledge of him. "I'll
never beg you," Carl whispered with great difficulty. Abraham never felt
anything, but in that moment, he felt his heart both swell and sink at the same
moment. His unwillingness to give in, despite everything he's been through in
the past 2 weeks. Abraham knew that if something like that had happened to him,
he would have broken a long time ago. This boy was strong, and Abraham
respected that.
Gareth's mouth moved down from Carl's ear to his neck, licking and sucking and
biting, leaving red bruises littered all over the boy's neck, marking him.
Teasing him. Teasing everyone. Everyone knew there was no way to stop this
horrific scene beginning to take place in front of them and Gareth was taking
advantage of that. As if raping a kid in front of his friends and family wasn't
enough, Gareth had to taunt and mess with them before he did it.
Gareth clutched Carl's matted hair and Abraham watched in sadness as Carl
screwed his face up, bracing himself for the impact as Gareth lined his hard
self up against Carl's entrance. He forced his way inside, enticing screams
from many, the loudest ones of all coming from the father and the son. Carl was
crying out in pain, Rick in emotional agony. Abraham looked over to see Eugene
covering his eyes and sobbing, Rosita looking down at the ground in a futile
attempt to escape the horrific scene taking place before her.
Gareth drew all the way out and shoved back into the screaming boy repeatedly.
Soon his dick was covered in the boy's blood and Abraham noticed a small puddle
starting to form beneath them. "Please!" Carl cried. "Stop!" Gareth didn't
stop, but rather sped up, tearing into Carl as the poor kid screeched. When he
finally came and pulled out, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, believing it
was over. Rick tried to stand and get to his son, but Gareth stopped him in his
tracks.
"Don't you remember what I told you, Ricky boy? My boys get their turns, too."
He placed his hands atop Rick's shoulders and pushed him to the ground and the
man guarding Michonne stepped forward, undoing his pants as Gareth put his back
on. Carl took one look at the man who was replacing Gareth and whimpered
pathetically. "This is Hudson," Gareth introduced the man to the group. "He has
a huge cock." Everyone stared as Hudson pulled out his member. Gareth wasn't
lying.
Abraham glanced over to Carl, who had pure fear plastered all over his face,
and Abraham wasn't about to judge him. He squeezed his eyes shut as the man
climbed on top of the boy. Hudson didn't hesitate as he shoved his way into his
awaiting victim eagerly. He thrusted in and out. In and out, the pool of blood
beneath Carl growing larger with each shove and pull from the man atop him.
Carl's screaming soon stopped as the boy passed out, but his moment of peace
was brief as Hudson laughed and slapped his face, waking him back up.
Abraham could feel a rage boiling up inside of him. They were raping this kid
in front of the only people he has left and they wouldn't even give him a
moment of peace throughout the ordeal.
It went on for hours. Abraham soon lost count after a few more men took their
turns, but Abraham began to notice that some of the men were going several
times. He noticed some going twice, thrice, others going once before walking
away to go do whatever. The big man, Hudson, went at least 3 times. He also
noticed a few not going at all, just guarding. They looked down at he ground as
they held guns to sobbing heads. Maybe they weren't all monsters. Maybe they
were just here because it's what they had to do to survive. Carl had stopped
screaming eventually, probably from going numb. Hell, better than complete
agony, right? The only sounds to be heard were sobs and the men grunting as
they pounded into the broken boy.
Once everyone was satisfied, Gareth let everyone go to Carl. Michonne and Rick
went first, as they were the closest to him. Michonne held him in her arms and
tried to comfort the sobbing boy as Rick fixed his clothes. Carl squeezed his
eyes shut and screamed, trying to fight his father off, which only made
everyone cry harder. He was trying to be strong, trying to hide it, but this
kid was either completely broken beyond repair or pretty damn close to it.
Carl's friends took turns trying to calm him down, but Carl just wept harder
with each person who came over. Abraham didn't know this kid, but still he
stood and made his way over, careful not to get too close as it could trigger
something. When Carl began to scoot back, Abraham stopped walking and stood in
front of the terrified boy. "I'm sorry this happened to you," Abraham mumbled
before turning and heading back to Rosita and Eugene, who were huddled
together, trying to efface the picture that was sure to be burning into their
minds and memories forever.
Carol
Carol crept through the trees with Tyreese, Judith in one hand and her pistol
in the other, stopping as she came across a man speaking into a radio. She saw
something that caught her eye; Carl's hat atop the man's head. He handed Judith
to Tyreese and stepped up slowly behind the man, placing her gun to his head.
"Take your hand off the radio and put it down," she demanded. He did as he was
told. Carol could hear a woman speaking through the radio, still trying to talk
to the man. "Martin?" she heard through the static.
"What do you want?" Martin asked, his voice shaky.
"Where did you get that hat?" She growled. Martin went silent; the only noise
was his shaky breaths and the radio static. She asked again. "Where did you get
that hat?"
Martin was being a stubborn asshole, so she was glad when Tyreese came to her
rescue. He moved to stand in front of the man and said to him. "You might want
to answer her. She's scary when she's angry." Martin cocked his head to the
side but didn't answer the question, just asked, "Why should I answer to you?"
Carol removed the gun and walked over to face the man on his knees. She took
Carl's hat off of his head and crouched down. "Because if you don't, I will
slice those pretty little fingers off one by one and shove them down your
throat." She smiled sweetly at him, sort of like a grandmother would. "You
wouldn't want that, would you?"
"N- no." Carol snorted. This guy was pathetic.
"Good. Then start talking."
"I..."
Carol heard a noise behind her and she whirled around to see Daryl crashing
through the trees, desperately running into the clearing. He stopped when he
saw Carol, but he didn't smile or hug her. Instead, he pushed her to the side
angrily and grabbed hold of Martin. "Where is he?" he yelled in Martin's face.
"Woah, Daryl, what's going on?" She asked him.
"They took Carl," Daryl said breathlessly. "They're fuckin' rapin' him, Carol."
Then he did something Carol had never seen before. He broke down in tears and
Carol just stood, eyes darting back and forth between Daryl and Martin with
shock and horror.
She thought for a moment before grasping onto Daryl. "I know what to do," she
said. She grabbed her knife, plunging it into Martin's head. She then hauled
Daryl to his feet. "Come on."
Rick
Rick and the rest were pried away from Carl and coaxed to their knees like
cattle in front of trough thing. Gareth held a knife up to Rick's throat.
"Sorry it had to be this way," he told him. "But not all stories have happy
endings. Certainly not yours. Or Carl's. Now, I'm going to hold true to the
other half of my promise. I am going to slaughter you," he drawled, bringing
the knife up to Rick's face and moving it around, taunting him. "Then, I'm
gonna feed your remains to your little boy. Sorry, my little boy. I won't miss
you, Ricky boy."
He moved the knife to slice into Rick's throat, but an explosion sounded and
the building shook. Everyone fell to the ground and Gareth stood quickly. "What
the hell?" he said before racing away.
***** It's The Burden of Failure *****
Daryl
Daryl covered his ears as the explosion sounded, leaving his ears ringing
slightly. He ignored the high-pitched whine and took the gun Carol had handed
him. The two split up, Carol leaving to walk into Terminus with the walkers,
and Daryl jumping the fence to get to Carl and the rest of their friends.
He ran into the building easily. Since everyone was fighting the walkers,
nobody was really guarding the back. He inhaled deeply, opening the back door.
Swinging it open, he raised the gun, only to be met with the fear-stricken face
of Rick. Daryl sighed in relief and lowered his gun. He moved to hug his
friend, but Rick wasn't having it. "Where's Carl?" he demanded.
"I know what room they're keepin' 'im in, but they might've moved 'im by now,"
Daryl mumbled as he trotted through the building, his friends following closely
behind. When they reached Carl's room, it was open and there was no sign of the
boy.
"What now?" Eugene asked, looking and sounding like he was on the verge of
tears.
"We have to find him!" Rick wailed. "Do you know where he might be?"
"No," Daryl mumbled. "I'm sorry."
Rick looked down at the ground and covered his ashen face with his hands.
"Hey," Maggie placed a hand on the back of his shoulder. "We're going to find
him," she assured the man. Rick nodded and went back the way they came.
Daryl ran after him, shooting at every Terminus asshole he saw. The group ran
past boxcar A, still looking around wildly for the boy they had all come to
think of as their little brother. "Rick!" Daryl called as he looked ahead. "We
have to go!"
Walkers were swarming their way. Too many walkers. Daryl ripped the walker
blood-covered sheet from his body and tossed it on top of the fence to make it
easier for everyone to get over. Rick kept hesitating and Daryl had to throw
him over.
Rick hit the ground with a grunt and glared at Daryl as he stood. Still looking
for his son, he screamed as he was dragged into the woods with the rest of his
friends. "Stop!" he yelled. "I have to find him!"
Glenn and Daryl exchanged glum looks as they worked together to get the man to
safety, as his cries were beginning to attract walkers.
"Daryl!"
Daryl turned his head to the side to see Carol limping up to them, clutching
the side of her stomach. Blood was seeping from her fingers. Daryl felt a leap
in his stomach and he raced over to his friend. "What happened?" he asked her
as he pressed his red rag up to her side, the same rag he has used to treat
Carl a few days ago.
"I saw Carl," she gasped. Rick was at her side in an instant. "What happened?
Is he okay? Where is he?" he bombarded her with questions and Daryl had to push
him back a little.
"Give her some space," he mumbled.
"Some guy and a few others were trying to escape, they had Carl with them." She
stopped to grunt in pain as Daryl pressed down on her wound, but Rick coaxed
her to continue. "I ran after them, but they shot me." She looked over at Rick.
"I'm sorry." Rick let out a sob and bent over to embrace Carol.
"You tried."
Carol gave him a weak smile and handed him something. Carl's hat. Rick took it
and buried his face in it, his body jolting with silent sobs, tears leaking
from his pained blue eyes.
"C'mon," Daryl said. "I know a place we can stay for a bit." He helped Carol to
her feet and began to lead everyone to Gabriel's church.
Carl
Tears streamed from Carl's eyes as his dad was torn away from him. He tried to
get up and chase after him, but Gareth pushed him down and kicked him in the
stomach. "Little whore," he snarled at the boy before leaving the room, pulling
out a knife as he disappeared through the small doorway. Carl began to sob,
mostly from fear for his friends and family, partly from the searing pain in
his ass. Would this be the last time he ever saw his dad?
Alex gripped his upper arm in a punishing grip, yanked him to his feet and
dragged him towards his room, the room he was likely to spend the rest of his
life in. However long that would be. Carl tried to stand and walk on his own,
but he was too weak and Alex was mostly dragging him. Halfway up the stairs,
Carl's legs completely gave out. He fell to the ground, and Alex, struggling to
hold him, sent them both tumbling down the stairs. Alex stood and slapped Carl
as hard as he could across the face. "You little bitch!" he yelled.
"I'm sorry."
Alex lifted his hand to hit Carl again, but an something nearby boomed and the
building shook. Small bits of debris fell from the ceiling. After a moment or
two, Gareth ran into them. "What's going on?" Alex demanded.
Gareth shook his head frantically. "I don't know." He took his walkie-talkie
and said something into it, frowning when he got a response. "Come on," he
said. "We're getting out of here." He hauled Carl to his feet and pressed the
boy's back against his chest. He started to lead the two out of the building
and away from the horde of walkers beginning to swarm the building. Carl wished
he had the energy to fight against his grip. They were close to the fence when
4 more Terminus people joined them.
They jumped over the fence, making their way into the woods. Gareth stopped to
spare a glance behind him, looking at the now burning building he used to live
in. Carl looked too, trying to find his friends. His heart sunk when he didn't
see them, but sped back up when a gunshot sounded, bringing Alex to the ground,
a bullet through his temple.
Carol marched up, looking very pissed off. She raised her gun angrily, but put
it back down when Gareth put a gun to Carl's head. Carl tried to mouth a 'no'
to Carol, knowing that Gareth wouldn't kill him. She put it on the ground
anyway, and Gareth laughed at her. "You did this?" he said.
She didn't answer, only glared at Gareth with intense hatred. Gareth grinned,
raised his gun, and shot Carol. "No!" Carl cried. He tried to run forward, but
he was hit in the back of the head and the world faded to black.
The last thing he saw before hitting the ground was Carol's pale, worried face
looking at him as blood poured out of her side.
The last thing he heard was her pleading.
***** Now I See *****
Gareth
"Where are we going to go?" Mike asked desperately. Gareth had Carl slung over
his shoulder and the group was sprinting through the woods, dodging corpses
every few feet. Gareth grunted as he stumbled over a log. A sharp pain shot up
his leg but faded away within a few seconds.
He pointed ahead. "You see that?" he asked, pointing at the church where they
had found Carl a few days ago. "We're staying there. Rick and the others are
most likely dead or dying, so we shouldn't have to worry about them finding
us." He took a step forward but frowned when Rick and the rest hobbled up to
the church. "Are you fucking kidding me?" Gareth said, bringing his arms up and
letting them fall in an angry manner. He crept closer and his mouth opened in
even more disbelief when he saw how big the group was. He counted, and said.
"They all survived?" He noticed a black guy he had never seen before. Plus one.
Then he saw the woman from earlier, the one he had shot. Daryl was carrying her
to safety, a rag to her side. "Even she made it? This is ridiculous!" Plus two.
"Now what?" Theresa said.
"Shut the fuck up," Gareth muttered. Carl twitched, startling Gareth. "We have
to get somewhere," he said. "And fast, before he wakes up."
Greg snapped his fingers together. "There's a school close by!" he announced.
"We could camp there until we find someplace better." Gareth nodded and
readjusted the unconscious boy on his shoulder.
"Take us there." Greg nodded and, gripping his Uzi firmly in his hand,
carefully stepped through the woods. The rest followed and eventually they came
across the school. They found a small area surrounded by 3 walls. "This is the
best it's going to get."
"Can't we just go in?" Theresa asked.
"How stupid are you?" Mike asked her in disbelief. He pointed to the glass,
revealing about 10 biters clawing at the glass and snarling.
"Oh."
"It'll have to do," Gareth mumbled, not exactly happy with their situation. Oh
well. At least he still had his boy. As if on cue, Carl groaned and shifted,
grunting when he moved the lower half of his body. "Shit," he heard the kid
whisper under his breath. "You're awake!" Gareth shouted, clapping his hands
together. "Good morning, Carl!" he exclaimed, ignoring the fact that it was
pitch-black outside.
Carl didn't sit up, he didn't have the strength. Instead, he just glared at
Gareth with pure hatred. Gareth snarled at him. "Don't you look at me like
that!" he shouted, moving closer to the boy, who flinched and raised his hands
pathetically. Gareth snorted and plopped down on the ground next to Carl,
huffing.
"Your dad is such a bitch sometimes."
No snarky comeback. No threats. Carl didn't say anything. That was good. He was
learning. "You know, I bet he was enjoying the show earlier. I bet the tears
were fake. A mask. Had to keep up his reputation for those sad little pussies
who follow him around little needy dogs. Just like you." He reached an arm out
and caressed Carl's cheek slowly and softly. The boy flinched but didn't pull
away. "You're my dog... aren't you?"
Carl still didn't speak, only glared at Gareth. Gareth was still staring at
Carl when he saw movement in his peripheral vision. "Hey!" he said. "What are
you idiots doing?"
Mike and Greg stopped in their tracks. The exchanged nervous glances before
either spoke. That was fine. Gareth was used to it. "We were just going out to
see if we could find some food."
Gareth lay down next to Carl, who tried to scoot away. Gareth grabbed him by
the arm and pulled him in closer, snuggling up to him. "Ok. Have fun." Gareth
turned his body so it pressed into Carl's. The boy froze, his breathing
becoming erratic. "Calm down," Gareth mumbled. "We won't sleep at all if you
keep freaking out like that."
Once Carl realized that Gareth was not going to take advantage of him, at least
not in that moment, he calmed down a little. He didn't relax, he was never
relaxed. The two drifted off to sleep.
Gareth woke in the morning. Mike and Greg were still gone and Theresa was
keeping watch. She noticed him move and gave him a pleading look. He nodded and
she lay down, closing her eyes. Gareth took his pistol out and stroked it,
messing around with it. And he waited.
Hours later, it was dark out again. Carl was still sleeping, catching up on the
days he had lost. Gareth heard a rustling in the bushes and Mike and Greg came
back with someone. Bob. They sat him up against a tree stump and took out a
machete. Gareth smiled and handed his gun to Theresa. "Keep watch," he ordered
her. "You two, start a fire."
Gareth first walked over and woke Carl with a sharp slap to the face. Carl
groaned and lifted his hand to terminate the stinging. "Check it out," Gareth
said smugly, sidestepping to reveal Bob. Carl gasped.
"Don't hurt him!" he begged. "He didn't do anything to you, please don't hurt
him. Please-" Gareth slapped Carl again, effectively shutting him up.
"Watch this."
Gareth took the machete from Greg and lined it up with Bob's leg. He smirked at
Carl before slicing in repeatedly. Hacking, sawing, slicing. Blood poured out
of the wound, some soaking into the ground and some trickling along the ground,
staining the grass red. Carl flinched with every swipe, every chop, then let
out a horrified, breathy shout when the leg fully came off.
"Why?" he sobbed.
"We have to eat," was the only response he got. Greg grinned as he sliced
pieces of meat off the amputated leg and slapped them over the fire. When the
meat was all cooking and the bone was thrown away, everyone started wandering
off to occupy themselves. Gareth, of course, went over to Carl.
"Take off your clothes." Carl didn't move. Gareth rolled his eyes and sighed.
"Carl, please do not make this harder than it needs to be." Carl still didn't
move so Gareth slapped his hands together in one quick motion and made him an
offer. "It's going to happen either way. But it doesn't have to hurt."
Carl curled his lip up in a sneer and didn't move. Gareth marched over and
ripped his shirt off, followed by his pants. He roughly flipped the boy over
and undid his own belt. He pressed down on the back of Carl's neck. "Beg for
it," he said.
"I..."
"Beg for it!"
"I... I want it!" Carl said with a small cry. "Give it to me!" Gareth could
hear the terror in his voice, the difficulty it took for him to speak those
foreign words. But still he smiled, lining up behind him. He thrusted into him,
clamping his hand over the youth's mouth to muffle his cries of pain. "Shut
up," he hissed. "You'll attract the biters!"
Carl quelled his screams, only letting the occasional sob escape his throat.
"I told you you'd beg for it," Gareth whispered in the boy's ear as he pounded
into him.
When Gareth was finished, he filled Carl up with his cum and climbed off him.
He glanced over to see Bob was finished cooking. "Time to eat, guys!" He said.
His friends frantically sprinted over, taking their share of the food. As they
began to eat, Gareth heard a whimper. He looked down and saw the Bob had woken
up. "Oh, hey, Bobby," he said as he grabbed another piece of meat.
He watched as Bob looked down at his leg, at Gareth, putting everything
together. He looked past Gareth and sadness took over his expression as he saw
Carl huddled up against the brick wall of the school, also whimpering as he
tried to fix his clothes without sparking too much pain in his abdomen.
Gareth took another piece of meat, this time crossing camp to go over to Carl.
He handed it to the boy, then proceeded to force-feed him when he didn't take
it. Luckily, the human cattle barely touched his tongue when Bob cried out,
"No!" Gareth moved the chunk away.
"What?"
"That's tainted meat!" Bob began laughing hysterically, yanking down his shirt
to reveal a bite. "Tainted meat!" he screamed repeatedly into the darkness.
Gareth's friends were yelling at him and vomiting, and Gareth barely noticed
Carl smirking behind him.
He knocked Bob out and tried not to panic. What was going to happen to him?
"Take him back," he demanded. He was so done with this world. He was so done
with everything.
--2 Days Later--
Gareth snapped his head up as rustling sounded in the nearby bushes. "Who's
there?" he asked the darkness.
A gunshot sounded, making Gareth jump up. Then a low, dangerous voice.
"Give me my son back."
"Rick."
***** I Was Broken To Be Made a Better Me *****
Chapter Summary
     Gareth finally gets what's coming to him! :)
Chapter Notes
     Warning: This is a bit graphic.
Gareth
"I was wondering when you'd show up," Gareth said, scratching the back of his
head. He smiled into the darkness and continued talking, trying to stall Rick
until the others got back from hunting. For now, it was only him and Carl.
Gareth tried to keep his voice steady, but he couldn't lie to himself. He was
terrified, and there was a very angry Rick after him. "How's everything been?"
Rick let out a growl and Gareth took a step back. "Not good, huh? How about a
good fuck? That'll help! Carl's got a nice, tight ass." Oops. Maybe that was
the wrong thing to say.
Rick stomped out of the trees and marched up to Gareth but stopped when Gareth
help his gun up. "Not another step! You'll regret it!"
Rick curled his upper lip in a sneer and tilted his head forward, casting a
shadow over his eyes. He looked like a motherfucking demon and Gareth's heart
thumped a few beats faster. He could feel the blood coursing through his veins,
could hear his heart pounding in his chest. He trembled slightly and had to
fight the urge to just run away right then and there. Despite the gun in his
face, Rick took a threatening step forward. "You are never touching my boy
again." He said, a growl rumbling in his throat. He lunged forward and Gareth
pulled the trigger, but a click sounded and no bullet came out. Gareth cursed
under his breath and turned to sprint away, but Rick caught his foot and Gareth
came tumbling down.
His face hit the cold, hard dirt below him and he felt a warm liquid leaking
out of his nose. He lifted a shaky hand and touched his upper lip below pulling
away. In the dim light of the fire, he could see the blood on his fingers. He
looked into the corner where Maggie and Glenn were helping Carl to stand up.
Gareth noticed Carl tensed when they touched him. With Rick handling Gareth,
the others were taking care of Carl. Daryl rushed over. Dropping his crossbow,
he slammed into Carl, wrapping his arms around him. "You're ok," he heard the
redneck whisper. "You're ok." He pulled away and took Carl's face in his hands,
checking him over for any major injuries. Carl gave him a pained, forced smile
and Daryl went back to crushing the boy against him.
Gareth snarled at the sight of someone else holding his boy and he tried to
stand up and stop it, only to be pushed down by Rick. "What do you think you're
doing?" the enraged man whispered in his ear. Gareth grunted as he was kicked
in his stomach, but didn't say another word.
"Daryl," Rick called to his friend. Daryl released his grip on Carl, but kept
one arm slung over his shoulder as he turned to face Rick.
"Yes?" he asked with a smirk.
"Come over here and help me deal with this piece of shit." Daryl nodded and
smiled cruelly at Gareth. Rick turned to his people. "Take Carl back to the
church. He doesn't need to see this." Sasha and Tyreese moved to help Carl, but
Carl let out a small "no."
"Carl, he needs to pay for what he's done to you."
"That's..." Carl took a shaky breath, trying to fill his small lungs. "That's
not what I meant. I want to watch."
Michonne was at his side in an instant. "Carl, baby, you don't want to see
this."
"Yes, I do."
Rick nodded. "We'll let him. Carl, if you decide it's too much, Michonne can
take you back." Carl nodded and took small steps forward, grunting and limping
as he tried not to aggravate his backside too much. He took a minute to sit
back down, but once he did, Rick waved everyone away. "Make sure nothing
interrupts us." The rest of the group, save for Michonne and Eugene spread out
to guard the area.
Daryl grabbed one of Gareth's arms and positioned it in a weird way. "Move and
I'll snap your arm off," the redneck snarled. Gareth couldn't see Rick, but he
heard the sound of a belt buckle. Fear consumed him and he opened his mouth to
say something, but Michonne beat him to it.
"Rick! What are you doing?"
"Getting revenge," the furious man on top of him said darkly.
"By stooping to his level?"
"I'm not stooping to his level. I'm raping a rapist, not a kid."
Michonne opened her mouth, but didn't say anything. Her face scrunched up in
thought, but she smiled. "Have at him," she said as she walked over and kicked
Gareth's already broken nose.
"Wait!" Gareth said. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I won't do it again! Let me go and
you'll never see me again! I promise!" He hated himself for being resorted to
begging, and worse, for lying. He wasn't sorry. He'd never be sorry, he'd never
be ashamed, and if he could, he'd do it again. But Rick didn't listen and
continued his assault on Gareth.
Gareth could feel cold hands fumbling with his clothes as Michonne moved to sit
next to Carl. Carl was glaring at Gareth and Gareth glared back. He felt a
knife to his ass, ripping his pants off when Rick got sick of trying to pull
them down. His now-ripped jeans were tossed to the side, forgotten, as Rick
positioned himself behind Gareth, lining himself up.
Don't scream, he thought. Don't scream. Act like you like it, maybe he'll stop
if he think's you're enjoying it. Don't scream, don't scream, don't scream- His
thoughts were cut off as he screeched. He didn't scream, he shrieked. Rick was
inside him, thrusting in and out as roughly as he could, making this as painful
for Gareth as he possibly could. And holy fucking shit, was he succeeding.
Gareth cried out as he was pushed forward and pulled back with each thrust.
"Please!" he howled. "I'm sorry! Please stop!" Rick snarled and grabbed a
fistful of Gareth's hair as he sped up, making the man shriek louder. His
furious grunts sounded throughout the area, fueled by fire and rage. Rick
moaned atop him and Gareth fought the urge to throw up. "Stop," he croaked.
"If you can hurt him like this every day, you can take it, you sick pervert,"
Daryl growled as he undid his own belt. His pants dropped to the ground and he
took out his member. "If you bite me, you'll have a lot more to worry about
than just Rick." Gareth whimpered and nodded, taking the length into his mouth,
just like he had forced Carl to do dozens of time before. With Rick's
thrusting, Daryl's cock rhythmically hit the back of his throat. His teeth
moved softly over Daryl, making the redneck shudder and groan in pleasure.
When Rick was finally, finally finished, he pulled out and fixed his pants.
Gareth tried to pull away from Daryl, but the man held his head in place.
Gareth continued to suck him off until Daryl climaxed and came with a moan,
shooting his seed down Gareth's throat, making him choke. Gareth opened his
mouth to vomit, but Daryl clamped his hands over his mouth, preventing him from
throwing up as well as forcing him to swallow. Gareth let out a small, pathetic
whimper as Daryl laughed and got to his feet. Gareth tried to get up, to run
away, but the pain in his ass flared and he just lay there. He couldn't move,
no matter how much he wanted to.
He glanced over and saw Carl. He bet his little cock slut was just loving this,
but he couldn't read his expression. Hate? Happiness? Terror? Nothing? "Hey,
Michonne, want a turn?" Rick asked. Gareth looked over in confusion before it
hit him. Oh, God, no. Gareth squeezed his eyes shut and muttered a silent
prayer to God, begging for help, just as Carl had done numerous times when he
was squirming under Gareth and his men. He didn't know why he did it. Even if
God did exist, he knew no help would come. Not after all he's done.
Michonne smiled but shook her head. "I'm not trying to get pregnant during the
damn apocalypse."
"Come on," Daryl said. "He won't find any pleasure in it. He won't come."
"And if he does?"
"You'll be able to tell if he likes it. You can just stop and we'll take over."
Michonne shrugged. "Ok." She placed a reassuring hand on Carl's shoulder and
stood, making her way over to Gareth. She flipped him over took his cock in her
hand, stroking it until he hardened against his will. Michonne undressed and
lowered herself onto Gareth. She began to lift and pump her hips, riding him.
"Stop," he groaned.
She slapped him across the face and went harder. She let out a soft moan and
sped up, all while Gareth cried out for help, knowing all too well that any
help that came would be shot down by Rick and his group. "I'm sorry," he
whispered. "I'm sorry. Please stop, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
Michonne shouted in pleasure as she came and climbed off Gareth, collapsing
next to him. "What now?" She asked Rick and Daryl, who were currently clinging
to Carl.
"We make him suffer."
"You already did that," Gareth mumbled, earning another slap from Michonne.
Rick stood and took out his knife, making his way over to Gareth. Gareth tried
to scoot away, but Rick grabbed his face and lined the knife up to his left eye
and shoved it in. Gareth cried out as pain coursed through his head and his
vision was split in half. Rick smirked and moved the knife to his other eye,
shoving it in and blinding Gareth. Gareth screamed again, this time louder and
brought his hands up to his face.
He could hear footsteps, felt dirt kicking up beside him as somebody dropped to
the ground. He felt a hand on his dick, then something cold and metallic. "No!"
he wailed. His pleads were ignored as the knife was lifted and brought back
down, cutting his dick off. He shrieked, but choked when something was shoved
into his mouth. His cock. He tried to spit it out, but it was shoved deeper and
deeper, being forcefully pushed down his throat.
He cried out in protest, but the cry soon turned into a scream of agony as the
knife was shoved into his leg, slicing and carving its way up. Then the same to
the other leg. Then his arms. Then his stomach up to his chest. Then he felt
the cold, wet metal on his throat. It ripped to the side and the pain stopped.
No more noise.
No more pain.
No more agony.
No more anything.
It was over.
He was gone.
He was dead.
***** Had To Learn To Let It Go And Let It Be *****
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes
Rick
Rick lifted a hand to wipe his sweat-soaked brow. He sat up and glared down at
the mutilated monster below him. Despite everything, he let the corners of his
mouth lift up in a smile. Gareth was gone. He could never hurt Carl again.
Carl.
The short-lived pleasure drained out of Rick as he remembered his son. He
placed a shaky hand on the ground and pushed himself up off the ground. As he
made his way over to his son, Michonne and Daryl took their leave. Eugene
stayed back, cowered in a corner. Rick noticed the man looking up at him with
big, fearful eyes. A faint wetness was present in the corner of his eyes, tears
threatening to fall. Rick ignored him and dropped to his knees in front of his
son. He extended his arms and gathered the boy to him. He tried not to feel
hurt as Carl tensed at his touch.
He crushed his boy against his chest, silent sobs making both Grimes quiver.
"I'm sorry, Carl," Rick breathed into his ear. "I'm so, so sorry."
"It's not your fault," was his response, but that was just a lie. Just some
shit said to make him feel better. Rick longed to ridicule himself, but
realized that his son needed him in that moment. He could feel sorry for
himself later. And so he sobbed, clutching his kid like they could be ripped
apart again at any moment.
The two stayed together for a while. They just sat, basking in each other's
warmth, each wondering to themselves Is this really happening? They only
stopped when a gunshot rang out. A scream, a cry, another shot. Rick ripped
himself from his son's grip and scrambled to his feet. "What's going on?" he
shouted into the darkness.
He heard a shout, but couldn't make out the words. The bushes rustled and he
heard feet stomping. He stepped back in surprise as 3 people were shoved on the
ground in front of him, one of them already half-dead. They looked past Rick at
Gareth's corpse, their eyes widening. "What?"
"Some of Gareth's men." Abraham grunted, grasping onto his rifle.
"And woman," the girl gasped.
Abraham kicked her harshly in the abdomen. "Shut the fuck up," he snarled. He
lifted his head and rolled his eyes. Rick couldn't help but let out a snort.
"What do you want to do with them?" Abraham asked. Rick frowned and held out
his hand. Abraham handed over his gun and Rick pointed it down, shooting one in
the head. He noticed Carl flinched as the shot rang out and he nodded to
Abraham.
"Just kill them. I don't care." Rick wanted to be the one to kill off Gareth's
men, but Carl appeared to be afraid of the gun, so he left the job to Abraham.
Besides, Rick didn't have the time to kill right now. his son needed him.
Abraham gave Rick a sharp nod and motioned towards the woods. Tyreese and Tara
came out and led the remaining man and woman away to their deaths.
"Come on," Rick said softly as he helped Carl to his feet. He could clearly see
the kid was exhausted and so he let him lean on his shoulder as he guided him
toward the church.
 
The next few weeks were full of tears, sorrow, and pain. As soon as Carl was
physically better, the group head off to go find Beth. During that time, Rick
noticed Carl growing closer to Daryl. Once or twice, Rick gave his friend weird
looks. Daryl would just shrug and turn back to Carl. Rick would smile and walk
away.
After Beth died, Carl took a liking to Noah. At first, he was reluctant. Well,
a little more than reluctant. When he first saw the strange man, he screamed
and tried to run away. Rick and Daryl had to chase after him and comfort the
traumatized boy.
Slowly, bit by bit, Carl began to let Noah near him. At first, he would only
let Noah sit next to him. He'd ignore Noah when the man attempted to make
conversation. Rick and Daryl shared a silent fist bump when Carl made the first
move to talk to the man. It wasn't much, just an awkward "So..." But it was
something. It was a start.
 
When Carl was given the news of Tyreese's death, the boy looked up, his eyes
cloudy and glassed over in confusion, as if he had forgotten who Tyreese was.
"Carl?" Rick said later when they were alone. "Are you okay?" What Rick got
wasn't what he expected. Carl looked up at him and broke down in tears. He
leaned in and grasped Rick's jacket tightly in his fist. He melted into Rick's
arms as his father hugged him back. "Oh, Carl," Rick said comfortingly, rubbing
his son's back.
"I want to die," Carl whispered. "I deserve to die." Rick felt a sharp stab in
his heart and he broke the hug. He leaned away and looked Carl up and down.
"No," he whispered when he found what he was searching for. A slash in the
boy's wrist, hidden by his shirt.
"Carl, no."
Carl sniffled and looked up, but Rick noticed he couldn't meet his eyes. "I
can't do this anymore."
"Yes you can, Carl," Rick said this firmly, but softened his voice when Carl
flinched. Carl didn't say anything and Rick took that as an okay to keep
moving. He wanted to say more, comfort his son, but he couldn't find the right
words. That day, he faced a serious dilemma.
Take Carl's weapons away or let him keep them?
In the end, he decided to take them away so the boy couldn't hurt himself
again. He was reluctant, as that left Carl vulnerable. He couldn't defend
himself without his weapons.
The group was waiting out the storm in the barn. Rick tried not to notice how
Carl flinched every time a clap of thunder sounded. Against the battering of
rain and thunder, Rick barely heard Carl's small voice. "I'm so dirty."
Rick teared up and wrapped his arms around his son. "You're not dirty," he
said. "That wasn't your fault. Gareth-" he stopped for a moment to inhale and
choke back tears when Carl tensed at the name. "- he was a sick man. He was
angry and disgusting and he took it out on you, and that was not your fault."
"Are you mad at me?"
Rick held onto Carl tighter as tears began to stream down his cheeks. He felt
drops on his arm and he realized Carl was crying too. "I could never be mad at
you. He was bigger than you and he was stronger than you and there was nothing
you could have done to stop it. Don't think for a second that it was your fault
and don't ever think I'm mad at you for it."
"It wasn't your fault," Rick repeated. "It was mine. I should have stopped him.
Hell, I shouldn't have brought us to Terminus in the first place."
"It wasn't your fault," Carl whispered. "We all wanted to go to Terminus, and
I'm glad we went. I'm not happy about what happened, but we found the others."
Rick shook his head and rested his chin on the crown of Carl's head. "It wasn't
your fault, Dad." Rick nodded and smiled, relieved that his son didn't blame
him. He still blamed himself, but he had his son's forgiveness, and that was
everything.
"I love you," the two Grimes said at the same moment. Rick looked down at Carl
just as Carl looked up at him. And Rick thought he saw Carl's lips curl up in a
small smile before falling back down as he rested his head against Rick's arm.
It wasn't much, but it was something. Maybe Carl could heal after all.
Chapter End Notes
     Thank you so much to anyone who read all the way through. That's
     really cool and I hope you enjoyed it.
     In case anyone is interested or cares, work and chapter titles are
     from Wage War - "Witness"
Please drop_by_the_archive_and_comment to let the author know if you enjoyed
their work!